updated 05:25 pm EDT, Tue September 15, 2009

Archos Phone Tablet confirmed

Archos in the same presentation that unveiled the Archos 5 has also confirmed that the company plans to enter the smartphone market with a high-end media phone. The tentatively-titled Phone Tablet is aimed at the same high performance, full touchscreen category as handsets like the iPhone 3GS or Toshiba TG01 and would be tailored to match. It should have a slightly smaller screen than the Archos 5 at a still-large 4.3 inches but a higher 854x480 resolution and a 1GHz ARM Cortex processor, both of which would put it above competing phones today.

At the same time, the phone is reportedly designed to be as thin as the flash version of the Archos 5 (0.4 inches) and would run Android. As a French manufacturer, Archos would use HSDPA for its 3G calls and data.

A timetable hasn't been given for when the Phone Tablet will arrive. While based on much of what the Archos 5 uses now, most smartphone launches involve negotiations with carriers. It's equally uncertain if the phone will be made available outside of Europe as the company hasn't said whether it will support the 850MHz band needed for coverage on AT&T and Rogers, among others.

Archos has had tablets with 3G data but until now has never entered into smartphones. Much of the limitation has come from its previous dependence on a proprietary Linux distribution that all but cut off third-party app support. [viaElectricPig]